


The Wisdom of Birds

by SaintSaens



Series: Circumnavigo [3]
Category: The Old Guard (Movie 2020)
Genre: Booker is just here to help, Domestic Fluff, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Menstruation, Post-Canon, and he does, and she's in pain, and she's in that mindset, are a legitimate therapy when you're feeling down, because sometimes we just need a bit of every day vignette, it qualifies ok, menstruation pain, mincing mocking birds, nile has her period, of bird pics, with a loooot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-18
Updated: 2020-10-18
Packaged: 2021-03-09 03:13:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,567
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27077821
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SaintSaens/pseuds/SaintSaens
Summary: Nile is hurting, her period pains are worse than ever before (but that's what she thinks every time).  Anyway, she's sick of having to go through the same circus each month.She never thought Booker's sense of humor would help. And yet.
Relationships: Andromache of Scythia & Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani & Nicky | Nicolo di Genova & Nile Freeman, Booker | Sebastien le Livre & Nile Freeman, Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Series: Circumnavigo [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1959520
Comments: 10
Kudos: 102





	The Wisdom of Birds

**Author's Note:**

> This can be read as a stand-alone. Although it is thought of as a part of the Circumnavigo serie (monster), where Nile and Booker start a conversation through messages then calls during Booker's exile. 
> 
> This would be between the 2nd and the 3rd chapter of No Man Left Behind.

It's been a month since they've started corresponding. 

Nile has become used to sending a message every other day. She's managed, with Copley's approval and careful planning to switch her burner phone (although she keeps the Hello Kitty with her at all time) for a smartphone. Her and Booker are exchanging with other means now, it's not only words which can be hard to get out sometimes, but it's also an imagery, a freaking zoo of untold languages and unsettled vague meanings shared over a picture of a cat or a funny post found online. 

One day, she sends him a message, about how she'll go hiking the next morning, because she's full of energy and none of the others have the will to follow her. But it doesn't matter. She will go, she's ready, she'll do that hike and come back running. She cries out at the lack of understanding from the team and despairs at their lack of adventurous spirit (no, Andy, you don't have to kill people in order for something to be an adventure!). She feels through the messages that Booker is patting her on the shoulder and nodding alongside her. 

That was the plan. A hike, up a mountain close by, under the sun and with the blue sky over her. And no other immortals to consider.

That was the plan.

Thing is, she doesn't go on that peculiar day on a hike. She doesn't do anything is more accurate, to say the least. 

Nile is in bed, trying to hibernate under piles and piles of bed covers, with a book, her phone and some crispy food. She feels cheated. She feels owned. She hates it. It's frustrating.

She sends Booker a crying toddler, hitting on a window with all her might. 

He sends her back a dog sitting dejectedly under the rain with a question mark. 

Nile grunts, buries herself deeper under the cover, because she knows the sun is shinning high outside. She hates it all, and most of all her current state of life. 

She doesn't want to explain, doesn't have time and also doesn't want to be all dainty around that century old man. She's in pain, she's frustrated and she absolutely does not enjoy any second of the current day. She wants to share adequately with someone (she wants to rant and tear up and boil everything down to the world is not nice). But Andy doesn't really remember what it was like to have periods, she shrugged when Nile asked her about it. It's been a long time, she never really took notice. And it feels like she's uncomfortable when she sees Nile in pain, because there's nothing she can do but wait by her side or be there when she calls. And Andy doesn't handle that well, at all.

Nicolo and Yusuf are both sweet, but the only thing they can do is bring her food and drinks, books if necessary. 

Nile feels her throat tightening. She wants to cry at her mom's knee, because she would understand the pain it is. She wants to lash out at her brother as he tries to coddles her, to be met with a cynical remark and start a verbal stupid fight that will leave them both laughing and drained for the rest of the night. But she can't have that. 

She has Andy, Joe and Yusuf, who are too sweet to face her like this. 

And she has Booker.

Nile sends him a gif of the elevator's door opening up to let out a red sea on an empty corridor. She's never watched The Shining but it's the most accurate depiction of how it feels for her currently. The battle raging in her guts. And how she would dealt with it. 

She wants to see if Booker gets it. A two hundred years old white man from the north-east of France. Sure he had a wife for a time, but she wonders how he dealt with that. She won't be the one to let it on him slowly. He asked. Nile will be glad to fucking deliver. 

A few minutes later, as her eyes are dropping on her vacant phone screen, thinking she might have scared him out, a new message pops in. 

Booker. Then another, and another. 

Nile frowns. He better not be listing what she could be doing, because he will be on the receiving end of a very not nice rant. She knows what she can do to help, and there's nothing more she can do yet. He won't be telling her how it goes. 

She is ready to growl fire with her fingers over the keyboard when the messages load completely. And she's thrown off her objectives.

Because these aren't texts messages per say. What she gets instead are two pictures, of softly painted birds followed by a question. 

_On a scale from one to the other, where do you see yourself right now?_

Nile blinks, because the birds are quite scary when she thinks about it, and she looks at them more closely. What the fuck is Booker thinking.

Birds, out of everything.

She opens up each picture, and she finds herself blinking at their absurdity. 

One of the pictures reads "Eff ALL y'all" and she wants to cringe at the badly used words but the open beak of the bird and its alarmed look is just too funny to pass up. She cracks a smile while her incredulity just goes up an inch. The other picture is a grey crow looking down disdainfully at her and she snorts as she reads "I'd sell you to Satan for one corn chip.". 

Okay, she thinks. He gets it, truly. That's to be commended. 

Nile wonders which answer is the more suited, because currently both are a good option for her, but before she can type an answer, another message pops up. 

_I hope it's not like this for you..._

And the attached picture is of a bird's skeleton, coupled with the words "Oh Jesus Oh my God" which although could be accurate to her current internal pains, is still not up to the corn chip one. She huffs a laugh at the stupidity of the pictures, wondering how on earth Booker got his hands on them. 

She starts to type, but it looks like Booker is on a roll because he sends another one. 

_Just so you know, this is me_ , he writes and the attached image is of another crow, looking dangerously down and on the side of the image Nile reads "Self care begins and ends with wine".

She rolls her eyes at the dramatics. 

_although it could be argued_ the new messages adds _that this is a more accurate representation of my individual self:_

She laughs even before opening the image that time, because the bird is too cute, and too small to be anything but irony personified. The text says "The risk I took was calculated, but man I am bad at math". 

And Nile is both shocked that he would bring up his mistake so casually, and at the same time awed at the exact description of his sorry ass. 

She explodes in laughter, and replies with tears in her eyes

_You can do both, you're just that good._

And then she settles on her pillow, and writes again, before he can counter her 

_I wish you weren't so hard on yourself._

Because he made a mistake, but alcohol never made it better. It never will, and she hopes he can someday see it.

 _I'm trying, I swear_ he sends her back. 

_Just because I know you and your three-ounces of whoop-ass would love to have a good punch at me if I don't get better quickly  
_

And with that message, she receives a pastel tinted bird, lovely and soft with a text saying "I'm three ounces of whoop-ass". 

Nile smiles at the texts. 

_Damn right I would._ she writes back. 

There is a knock on the door to her room. She looks up.

"Yes?" 

The door handle shifts and Nicky pops his head in. "How are you doing?" He asks, softly. 

Nile smiles "It's still hurting. But I'm feeling better. Thank you." 

"I'm glad" he smiles back "you look like it too. If you need any soup, there is some in the kitchen. Or do you want me to bring you a cup?"

Nile sighs at the way the man will get out of his way to be nice. "I'm good. I'll come down in a few. Thank you again, Nicky"

He nods and closes the door quietly. Nile looks back at her messages, noting a new one from Booker. 

_If you need anything - just ask_ he wrote. 

The last picture is a crow, looking surprised. "I hope you'll excuse my cheap wit, but the hour is late - and it's all I have left" Nile reads out loud to herself. She shakes her head and breathes out.

She feels comforted, not any much better physically, but the mentality is somehow here, even if she won't go hiking. Some days are just like this, and you've got to roll with it she thinks. She writes back a quick thanks, getting up to go out and see the others.

(If she saves the three-ounces of whoop-ass picture and uses it as her screen saver, Booker is none the wiser)

**Author's Note:**

> The title is taken from an actual book about Birds. 
> 
> The Mincing Mockingbirds are a collection of very cute birds images with very strong wording, and it always makes me laugh when I'm down. So there. Here you can find the 3 OZ picture. The others are great too (although some are downright sexists): https://www.mincingmockingbird.com/collections/troubled-bird/products/3-oz-magnet
> 
> Also. My sad french-speaking ass was downhearted when I couldn't put in the phrasing "Les anglais ont débarqués" which is something we can use in french to "politely" tell people that we're having our periods. It means " the English have arrived" and I find it very very ironic from a French point of view. Hundred years war and everything... Plus considering Booker is French and Nile is American (and you know, English - Americans... same difference lol). Anyway, there's a story there. But it didn't fit :(. 
> 
> Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed it!


End file.
